81pc of Irish people own smartphones, but just 10pc have insurance

Despite the growing cost of mobile devices, companies are finding it tough to persuade Irish consumers to insure their gear, according to a new report.

According to research from Millward Brown, we really don’t fear the stealer, with just one in 10 smartphone owners having insurance, despite almost one-third of us losing our phone or dropping it down the toilet.

We’re crackers, too, with 30pc damaging the screen on our phone, with Liberty Insurance commissioning the report, it tends to point readers towards a glaring ‘insure me’ neon sign.

The study, which involved 1,001 people throughout the country, revealed almost universal ownership of smartphones (81pc) and laptops (79pc).

The findings showed 22pc of us spend between one and three hours on social media every day, with one-in-four women spending at least that much time on social media, compared to just one-in-five men.

The geographic breakdown of people surveyed was Dublin (269), the rest of Leinster (277), Munster (263) and Connacht/Ulster (202).

“These research findings show just how important gadgets are to us,” said Deirdre Ashe, director of personal lines at Liberty Insurance.

According to the report, 64pc of 17-29-year-olds feel panicked, desperate or sick if they leave their phone at home, compared with just 31pc of those aged 55 or above. On average, 25 minutes per day is spent on gaming using a mobile phone, while Irish adults spend on average 31 minutes on calls a day from their mobile.

“Smartphones have become an extension of our social lives and i its where most social networking is done these days, so these findings aren’t all that surprising,” said broadcaster Eoghan McDermott.

“People use their smartphones for so much more than calls and texts these days and many people keep precious memories on them in the form of photos, so it’s important they’re kept safe.”